by Francis Ferry, NLN baseball beat writer
June 7, 2030: Asheville, North Carolina – Owners, GMs and a few agents or three, gathered at the Grand Ballroom of the Asheville Hotel for the 2030 PEBA Amateur Draft, with all four corners and more than a few tables busily whispering and sorting pages or swiping tablets as teams readied themselves for the first day festivities.
This years draft was upped to 20 rounds as the Commissioners office anticipated teams needing the additional picks to assist the building of the new Rookie League, and Day 1 was scheduled to last five rounds, instead of the traditional three – and Commissioner ‘Harry’ Castle wasted no time getting things started, as he addressed the crowd of baseball leaders in record time, and announcing the Manchester was on the clock while the old Grandfather clock in the ballroom was still chiming 1pm – which was a hell of a feat when it chimed once!
Having set the tone with his quick, brief notes, the GMs themselves, wasted no time – and Manchester started it off with the quick selection of SP Bill Knight out of Arizona State. The Borealis, having failed to make the post-season last year, and finishing third, held the 15th overall pick (the earliest their own pick has been in years) and with that they went for what they viewed was the best bat available – 1B Raul Munoz from the University of Arizona. Raul, one of those rare, 5th year seniors, was the 42nd overall pick by the Canton Longshoremen last season, but they were unable to agree upon a signing bonus, and thus was back to school, and he was still available for the Borealis at 15.
Munoz played in 262 games for Lutes and had a career .299 average – though he hit .333 and .330 the past two seasons. Scout’s love Raul’s fluid swing, covering the gaps – he’s averaged 15 doubles a season, if not possessing great power. What they also like about Munoz is his patience at the plate and ability to avoid striking out – he’s walked more than he’s K’d, always a good sign. He’s not fast, but not a plodder, and defensively he covers a lot of ground, but has a lot of glove work and arm work to become a competent 1B. He may pan out to be an excellent DH in the future – especially with this years expected DH, ‘Litterbug’ Arundale playing more RF than anticipated. A 3-time All-Star, Platinum Stick winner at his position and Playoff MVP, the Borealis feel they have a player who has established his upward path. When speaking with Aurora GM Will Topham, he was enthusiastic – he had been in contact with Raul and he was eager to get started – and Will suggested that Munoz may very well begin his pro career at A Ball. San Luis Rio Colorado manager Jose Colon will be excited about that – the Rapidos Blancos are in a heated division race with Rosarito and could certainly use a strong hitting anything!
A reasonably sized Supplemental round was held this year, and Aurora held picks 5 and 6, thanks to the signings of Derrick Dwyer with Fargo and Tomas Flores with the Scottish. Aurora used the first selection to select a 21-year old right-hander out of Scotland and Cambridge University – Lewis Uige (‘weej’). A hard worker, Uige is a former teammate of Arundale’s during ‘Litterbug’s junior and senior seasons, and when asked about the tall (6’7”) and lanky (200 lbs) starter, he told us that he ‘has the potential for some nasty stuff, if he can just harness his control’. Lewis started 33 games the past three seasons, after pitching exclusively in relief as a freshman, and as a starter he posted a 12-8 record, with a 2.14 ERA. Over 176 IP as a starter he struck out 180 and walked 38 with 14 HR. Featuring high-potential cutter, curve and change, Uige was an all-star last year. To top it off, Uige fields his position well enough to help himself out. It’s easy to see Lewis having a lei dropped over his head and onto his shoulders, as he arrived in the Islands to pitch for Mokule’ia, who currently have a slim division lead in a tight Aloha Division.
With the 32nd pick in the draft, Aurora turned their attention to the outfield and selected LF Gabriel Rodriguez out of UAB. Rodriguez is much like Munoz – smooth swinging, gap-filler, with the ability to put the ball in play. A career .320 hitter, Gabriel posted a .919 OPS (71-2B, 32 HR in 193 games). Also like Aurora’s top selection, Gabriel is not the fleetest of souls – unusual for the typically speedy Borealis, but Rodriguez does play a quality outfield, even though he tends to be limited to left. Just to complete the comaparisions, Gabriel is also a former All-Star and Platinum Stick. The soon to be 22-year old Malaysian-born Puerto Rican may be a hard-sell – rumor is he had hoped to be drafted with one the Japanese teams, so to be close to home, so Aurora may have to pony-up a bit to bring him into the fold, but assuming he signs, it’ll be the Surf and Snow for at least a couple of week –and with early success, a trip to the California-Mexico border will be his next stop.
Aurora finished their day with the 14th pick in the 2nd round – Aurora lost their 3rd round pick in trade with Okinawa (for Kichibei Kamuta), their 4th round pick to Toyama (for Dan Ross) and their 5th to Okinawa (also in the Kamuta deal). After drafting three players who were well on their developmental curves and ready to contribute at higher levels, Aurora turned to the high school lot as they began drafting for their inaugural Montserrat Mystique roster. With this pick Aurora selected SP Edgar Silva from Seton Hall Prep, and he instantly comes in with high expectations as a leader of the rotation – and not just because his coach has frequently used that term to describe the young Lansing, MI native. Growing up in the shadow of the Michigan State Persian program was not an inticement as word spread quickly that he’s ready to sign and get to work. Silva has a broad array of pitches that includes a change that is devastating – when he gets it over the plate. In high school, he got away with it as undisciplined hitters often swung at it. During his four years at The Hall, he had 42 appearances – including 32 starts his last three years – where in 196 IP he struck out 249, walked 42 and posted a 1.51 ERA. When opponents put the ball in play, they did so at a .204 average. “We were super excited to see Silva still available for us at 49.” Said Will Topham, “Kentucky and Yuma each had two picks right in front of us, and we thought for sure they were taking Edgar – especially with Yuma’s early focus on pitching.” Silva was a two-time All-Star and finished third in the Outstanding Pitcher voting his freshman year – as a reliever! As well as Edgar pitched at Seton Hall, the 18-year old is still raw, and it’s off to the Caribbean and the top of the Montserrat rotation.
Day 1 finished as teams sped through rounds 3, 4 and 5 efficiently and the day actually finished early – and amazing feat, considering past years as the draft slogged past it’s designated Day 1 end time. For the Borealis, they will be primed for their first pick tomorrow – 17th being their designated/earned spot. Day 2, and it’s 14-picks, will likely lean towards the high schoolers, but then again, last years draft hasn’t shown to be a barn-burner. Top pick David Simmons (33rd overall) flailed and after a hard year at Mokule’ia, he’ll begin 2030 with the Mystique; Hector Moran (41st overall) and Daragh Samms (104 overall) haven’t looked strong, either, in a draft that Aurora had fewer selections early on than this. Thus far the 2030 draft is looking better.
Look for my colleague, Ray D. Enzé’s blog entry tomorrow, for further discussion of the Borealis’ 2030 draft class. Many GMs left the Ashland Hotel bemoaning the quality of talent – will the Aurora crew be amongst those after round 20? Tune in tomorrow.
